Fiberoptic illuminators are widely used to provide improved lighting for surgical and other medical procedures. Typically, the light generated by the illuminator is transmitted through a conventional fiberoptic cable to a head lamp, lens or other mechanism, which emits the light in a direction selected by the surgeon or other user of the device. Occasionally, the intensity and/or the color or wavelength of the emitted light requires adjustment. For example, the intensity may have to be selected to suit the particular setting or medical procedure that is involved and to provide adequate, but not blinding illumination of the object being illuminated. Different wavelengths or colors of light may be required to illuminate particular types of tissue, depending upon the medical procedure involved.
One serious limitation of conventional fiberoptic illuminators is that intensity and color adjustments must be made at the illuminator using standard knobs, dials, switches, digital touch pads and other forms of adjustment. Due to the typical distance between the illuminator and the patient being operated upon, adjusting the intensity or color has been a problem. The physician or surgeon usually must devote his or her full attention to the patient and to the particular surgical procedure being performed. As a result, an assistant is usually required to adjust the lighting at the illuminator. This can result in distractions to the doctor and/or miscommunications between the physician and the assistant.
An intensity adjustable fiberoptic cable apparatus is disclosed in my co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 08/719,839, filed Sep. 30, 1996 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,510). This product permits the physician to adjust the intensity of light through the fiberoptic cable by means of an adjustable iris located proximate either end of the cable. Although this apparatus provides for satisfactory intensity adjustments, it does not permit the color or wavelength of the light to be adjusted. To date, such color still must be selected through the use of a digital touch pad or other form of adjustment mounted on the fiberoptic illuminator housing.